NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell yesterday emphasized that the league held Colts Owner Jim Irsay "to a higher standard than the one that would apply to a player" when it hit him with a six-game ban and $500,000 fine for pleading guilty to impaired driving, according to Mike Florio of PRO FOOTBALL TALK. Goodell during a press conference said, "This penalty is 10 times financially more than a player would get and there is no discipline from a suspension standpoint for a first-time offender in DUI in the players. Now, we would like to change that, but this is obviously six games and (Irsay) will be subject to the same issues of testing and program-related that we would expect others to do. It’s very important for us to hold everyone up to that standard and Jim understands that and understands his responsibility" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 9/3). NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith was asked whether Irsay's punishment was fair, to which he pointed out Irsay "wasn't suspended based on an arrest." Smith: "There was the desire for the league to wait and apply due process. Roger went out of his way to make sure and to emphasize that he was going to act at the end of the criminal justice system process. I think that was prudent because it then empowers the commissioner to have all of the facts upon which to base punishment." However, he asked, "Why would you want to make some change between a person who owns the team and a person who plays for a team? I have trouble trying to figure out what the existential difference is between those two people" ("Fox Sports Live," FS1, 9/3).
PLAYERS NOT HAPPY: ESPN.com's Mike Wells noted some in the NFL thought that Irsay's suspension and fine "were not a sufficient enough punishment." Bills DE Jerry Hughes said, "It's kind of like a slap on the wrist. But it is what it is. It's the business." Wells noted some players "questioned whether there was a double standard for how Goodell ruled on punishments for owners as opposed to players." Titans S Michael Griffin: "What does it actually do to the team? Suspend him for six games -- he can still watch at home, he's on vacation. $500,000 just lets you know how much he's actually making. How does that affect the actual team" (ESPN.com, 9/3). ESPN's Jim Trotter reported many teams feel the punishment "was fair and equitable," but players "feel like enough wasn't done." Trotter: "In players' minds, a higher standard means harsher punishment. They don’t feel that there was enough punishment on Jim Irsay." ESPN's Louis Riddick said the players are "never going to be happy with this, because they do have a valid argument here" ("NFL Insiders," ESPN2, 9/3). But CBS Sports Network's Jim Rome said, "Goodell did in fact hold the owner to a higher standard. It took way too long to get to it, but Roger got this one right. To all the players who are crying about it, they have it all twisted” (“Rome,” CBSSN, 9/3).
I'LL BE MISSING YOU: In Indianapolis, Stephen Holder writes for Irsay, a man who "hasn't missed a game in the Colts' 30 years in Indianapolis, there's perhaps no greater penalty." Colts P Pat McAfee said, "That's going to be the hardest thing for him, the love and passion for the Colts" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 9/4).
